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English Traditions - Yorkshire Puddings Perfect Every Time!

July 11, 2010 - 6:19pm

BellesAZ

English Traditions - Yorkshire Puddings Perfect Every Time!

My husband is British born and my Mother-In-Law loves cooking traditional meals even though they have lived on Australia for many years. Here in the states, it's fun to experiment with different things British and one of my favorite dishes is Yorkshire Pudding. People guess they are hard to make, but there really isn't anything easier. We like them for Sunday dinner along with a roasted meat (usually beef) and a bit of gravy to go with it, although many people love these eggy crepe delights for breakfast too.

INGREDIENTS:

Whole Eggs, Milk, Flour and a pinch of salt (more on measurements below)

What is the secret to Yorkshires? My Mother-In-Law says it's a very hot oven, smoking hot grease/fat and the right mixture of eggs, milk and flour. She also has another secret that she was hesitant to share until I pressed her about measurements. She said:

3. Now, measure out exactly the same amount of all purpose flour as your eggs measured.

In other words, if your eggs measured 1 cup, then you'd want a cup of milk and a cup of flour. Now you have the three key ingredients for never fail Yorkshires... but there's more!

Using a mixer, blend together the eggs and the milk and add a pinch of salt. Let that sit on the counter to rest in a bowl for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, take out a 12 muffin muffin tin or a 6 popover popover tin. Pinch off about a pea size bit of beef fat, lard or if you want, you can use vegetable oil (approximately 1/2 tsp in each Yorkie cup. Veg oil does not impart the roasted meat taste, but it is a decent substitute if you need one.

Now, your egg mixture should have rested long enough. Now it's time to add the flour, but you'll want to sift it quickly into the egg/milk mixture. Use your hand mixer and incorporate the flour, egg and milk together well until the consistency is like a thick cream. Let this mixture rest on the counter for at least 30 minutes or longer.

About 15 minutes before you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Pop in the tin with the fat on the bottom and let it sit in the hot oven until it is starting to smoke. This takes about 10 minutes.

Remove the tin and quickly fill each cup about half way. (Note: you'll know your pans are ready if you hear the batter sizzle as you pour it in.) Return the pan quickly to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Whatever you do, DO NOT OPEN YOUR OVEN during the baking time. You can watch the show through the glass in your oven.. after about 8 minutes of baking, your Yorkies will begin to rise and they will emerge from your oven gorgeous, browned and crisp. Enjoy them!

I almost passed this one by but I am sure glad I did not - they are beautiful and sound tasty too. If I had it would have been out of ignorance - I did not know what Yorkshire Pudding was - so now I know and I am sure I will try them very soon. Thank you for sharing your family secrets with us all.

There are some things that do better by measure. This is one of them, at least for me. Remember, this isn't a recipe reliant on flour weight accuracy. The entire recipes' success rests heavily on your FIRST measure.. the eggs.

I can't guarantee the recipe with weights, but with measures you can't go wrong. Go ahead, break out that measuring cup. I won't tell.

The beauty of the formula I submitted is its simplicity. Since eggs weigh different than flour, you would have a different percentage and therefore, a different recipe altogether than Andy's (particularly when you're diluting the milk with water, changing altogether the formulation of one of the top three ingredients). Not saying Andy's recipe is wrong, incorrect, or shouldn't be used.. but mine is not based on percentages, therefore Andy's would be a different formula. Andy, I'd be curious to do a side by side taste test of yours vs my Mother In Laws. Maybe I'll ask my husband to pick out which is which :)

With that said, however, one can find any number of incredible Yorkshire pudding recipes that are all formulated slightly differently. In the end, it comes down to personal preference, taste, tradition and what works best for you. Not trying to be picky, but Andy's Yorkshire pudding, as delicious as it might be.. is a different recipe to mine when weighed based on percentages. It's equally good to eat, I'm sure.

I published this one because it is so different from the way we are trained to think in terms of bakers percentages and bakers math. Every time I make it, I feel as if I'm "cheating" and I get a little giggle when they come out as perfectly as if I weighed them.

For traditional or artisan breads, I agree that measuring vs weighing would have different results. However, for this fun recipe, we can relax and take off the bakers hat for just a moment and enjoy it for what it is. At the end of the day, it's lovely to know that Yorkies don't have to come out of a box and any good recipe is a treat to behold.. no matter how it comes together.

I love Yorkshire puddings and I make a pretty good batch now and again but I like the look of yours so I think I'll give this version a go next time! Thanks for sharing. I allways prefer a family recipe!

Jeb,

I have a great Lemon Curd recipe I can post later. (It's at home I'm at work!)

Those are fantastic looking Yorkshire puddings and I speak here as the daughter of a Yorkshireman who made the best Yorkshire pudding I ever tasted. He used to make one great big one in a hot roasting tin and then cut in up and pour gravy over the pieces.

I would echo what Andy says your mother in law is spot on re. the hot oven and hot fat. However I do also remember my father letting the batter stand for longer.

Interesting point about the eggs. I would normally weigh things but find egg fluid tricky to weigh. Starting with the eggs makes sense. Looks like the result is great following your family practice! Thanks for sharing.

Ok so it was driving me crazy and I looked it up. Here is my Lemon Curd recipe. It's from Lesley Mackley's "The Book Of Afternoon Tea".

LEMON CURD

4 LEMONS (FOR JUICE AND ZEST)

1 3/4 C SUGAR

1 1/2 C BUTTER (CUT INTO SMALL PIECES)

4 EGGS BEATEN

IN A HEATPROOF BOWL COMBINE THE LEMON JUICE AND ZEST. STIR IN SUGAR AND BUTTER. SET BOWL OVER A SAUCEPAN OF SIMMERING WATER STIRRING OCCASSIONALLY UNTIL BUTTER IS MELTED AND SUGAR IS DISSOLVED. STRAIN IN EGGS AND CONTINUE STIRRING UNTIL MIXTURE IS THICK AND CREAMY, ABOUT 10-15 MINUTES. (SHOULD COAT THE BACK OF A WODDEN SPOON) MAKES ABOUT 1 1/2 LBS.

I do enjoy a nice, soft scone. The British had the right idea.. even in times of conflict and battle, one always took time for a proper "cuppa" with a freshly baked scone. LOL

In Australia, the scones I tried in tea houses tended to be much higher and lighter than british cream/milk scones. My Mother in law uses self-rising flour if I recall correctly, but not sure why you shouldn't use regular with baking powder.

My Mother In Law makes hers in a big tin and does exactly the same thing. I agree that letting the dough rest on the counter is key to good ones, but I'll be honest. I've baked these in a multitude of ways. Last night, I put the roast in and whipped up the batter.. I normally do it this way and let it sit on the counter as the roast cooks. However, some mornings, I've made these as a side thought and only let the batter sit for 20 minutes and they still raise beautifully and taste fantastic.

One thing that I feel makes a big difference is the use of farm fresh eggs in this dish. The Yorkie batter is colorful and very yellow compared to the pale color of regular eggs and the batter has a much better structure overall.

And, one final note.. as I said above, there are some dishes that just need to be measured, not weighed. If this were a bread recipe in the traditional sense, I would understand the need to weigh. But the egg measure directs everything else that follows in this dish and it is this measure that creates the pathway to success.

Good to hear your mother-in-law makes them in a big roast tin too! I bet they'd be lovely with yellow farm eggs. Re the eggs - our posts must just have crossed over. I just edited mine to say it makes sense to start with the eggs. Obviously works great by the examples above! Kind regards, Daisy_A

In England it is traditionally made by pouring the batter into the bottom of the meat roasting tin part way through cooking. The meat being up on a trivet. It then cooks as a single pudding in the meat (traditionally beef) fat and gets all the juices dripped on it. The individual puddings are the posh way of serving it, but always as an accompaniment to roast meats.

In the olden days it was then cut up and served before the main course to fill up the diners so they wouldn't want so much expensive meat!

The individual puddings usually have a well in the middle of them which can be a container for the gravy.

I've made mine both ways.. in the tin and in the individual pans and wondered why the smaller ones had the well in the center. My husband likes those because of the gravy boat result, but I like either. Since I like a good, REAL gravy with my roast, I cook my roast a bit differently in order to get lots of brown bits on the bottom and rich juices from the meat. I usually skim off the fat and use it in the tins and because of wanting real gravy, I've always done the individuals.

For my roast, I choose a nice rib roast (bone in or not) with a nice fat cap and season the top simply and generously with S&P. I lay the roast directly into the pan and bake at 500 degrees farenheit for about 30 minutes. Then I turn the heat down to 325 to finish off the roast. When I remove the roast to a platter to hold, I get the best drippings for gravy known to modern mankind :)

I will say that this time in the Yorkies, I used farm eggs that we purchased locally through a nearby dairy that I just learned sells fresh eggs. My batter was vivid, bright and yellow and there was a definite richness to the Yorkies that I had not seen in a long time. I used to raise my own hens years ago and had forgotten the incredible difference a fresh egg can make.

The traditional way may well be cooking the Yorkshire puddings with meat, but my sister's mother-in-law has always served them to me with lemon-curd, and she's as British as they come. She came to the US in the early 50's.

Yummo!! My Mother In Law is from Yorkshire as well. She likes them made with currants in the morning. Using bacon fat and a squeeze of lemon and powdered sugar. So good. They are actually not that far off from the German Puff Pancake, which is also a morning favorite at our house.

Your ideas for filled Yorkies sounds great. My husband would love those, he misses his Aussie meat pies and this might be a good way to do them. A nice idea for shepherd pie mince as well.. I'm getting fatter just typing about that!

Or anyone who might know. What is the purpose of the 10 min. wait and then another 30 min wait before baking? When I first started making these many years ago, my sister had me convinced that you had to beat the daylights out of them on high speed to incorporate air into the batter. Now I use a whisk. These are perfect for me because they seem to turn out no matter what I do.:>)

Allows the proteins to relax a little, so the Yorkshire Puddings aren't rubbery. I don't think beating the daylights out of the mix is the best way to get lift. The smoky hot fat and hot oven are more effective.

A quick search does not reveal any reason for letting the batter stand (in one recipe it suggests several hours is better!), but I was told years ago that it was to fully hydrate the flour. I don't know if this is any more true than the other suggestions, or just another way of saying it.

I agree extended standing time is to allow the flour to absorb extra moisture. I think I mentioned this further up the thread. However, this has only small impact if the standing time is reduced to a half hour...remember the batter has a reasonable fat content!

But, egg is full of protein; the batter is high in liquid. Does it not stand to reason that extensive beating will result in toughening the the proteins in both the egg and flour? I was trying to suggest this in a way which made it self explanatory and easy to just agree with.

Our posts crossed I see. I added a pix of my morning indulgence. I've been around, just not posting much. I saved some fat scraps from steaks a couple nights ago as was suggested above for the bottom of the pans. Nice flavor! Yorkshire puddings are an item that will bring me out of retirement. Such a nice flavor, it's a comfort food for me.

No discussion about Yorkshire pudding is complete without mention of another British classic - Toad in the Hole.

Depending upon the number of diners, take 6 to 12 good pork or beef sausages (or experiment with others if you like) and put in a roasting dish with a little fat / oil to stop them sticking. They will produce more fat as they cook. Roast in a hot oven till they are just cooked right through then pour in your pre-prepared Yorkshire Pudding batter and return to the hot oven for a further 15-20 minutes, until the batter has risen and cooked. Serve with veg and gravy.

Some recipes say to put all the ingredients, raw sausages and batter, into a hot tin together, but I've found that the batter insulates the sausages and they may well not cook right through before the batter is well done. (Old family saying - when it's black it's done!)

These can be made as individual puddings using a small baking dishes big enough to accommodate a portion of sausages.

I forgot about those. My husband loves them with chipolata (sp), which we can't really get here in the states. I like the pre-roasting idea since you're using that fat. Holy cow, that sounds so good.. and really simple. Thanks for the idea.

BellesAZ, I hope you don't mind our prattling on here about how wonderful your puddings are. I like the measuring format very much. I'm trying to encourage my daughter to try a few of the things she likes and this works out perfectly to an even dozen filled half way up. I pull the hot smoking pan and place it on the open door to keep the heat up in the cups while I pour. Your trick of pinching a small piece of beef fat is a magic flavor enhancer. I could tell right away, heavenly aroma.

Next time I will promise to be more patient and wait for the batter to mature.

No worries, Eric! There are probably as many variations to the recipe as there are English Mothers. Let me just address one of your questions - why the wait time?? I have no clue! I am no expert, but I am guessing that a 30 (or more) minute hold enhances the flavors and when you're using fresh egg and milk, the milk has had a chance to come up to room temperature, absorb more flour and the egg somehow does its work in there too. I know you can get the same rise with batters that have sat on the counter for two hours as batters that have sat there 10 minutes - I've done it myself, forgetting about making the puddings until the very last minute. But I think the batter that has been set for at least 30 mins or more has a better texture. It also could just be a tradition that's been passed along for generations.

I have always let mine set for at least 30 mins, but mostly it's longer since I usually prepare my batter when I put my roast in the oven. All of the historic English recipes say 2 hours for the most part. It would be interesting for you to do a side by side taste test to see if there is any difference.

No matter what, they are fun to make, fun to eat and oh, so good.

Interesting to note that the simple Yorkshire pudding may be on the verge of achieving special status like Parma Ham, Champagne and Roquefort cheese. If the Yorkshire food council has their way, they will be able to protect the name Yorkshire Pudding and even pubs and manufacturers of box recipes will only be able to call it Yorkshire Pudding if it is manufactured in Yorkshire. We will still be able to buy it in a pub, but it will most likely be called Dripping Pudding or some other name.

I've ever used for Yorkshire Pudding was from The Vincent Price Cookbook , the ingredients were blended in a blender and then left to sit until the roast was done (the accompanying roast rib of beef recipe is extraordinary also) and then re-blended just before pouring into the delicious smoking hot beef drippings. There is something about the puffy, eggy pudding flavored with the roast drippings that is just fantastic!! Nowadays, finding (and being able to afford) a 4 rib beef roast is a rare thing but all the great posts about Yorkshire Pudding has got me craving it!!

We usually get our rib roasts from Costco and generally I only make them a couple times a year (once on New Years Day as a tradition). However, any roast offers up some fat and enough drippings to make a gravy. I have even used bacon fat for them if I'm making them with a roast I have in my pressure cooker or other. My husband only asks that there is gravy when they are served! You can be sure that at the turn of the century English commoners couldn't afford a rib roast either and during the war, there was nothing at all so grand. Yet, Yorkshire puddings remained a staple.

For posting this recipe! Phew. Every time that I log into this site, I see another bunch of recipes that I NEED to try. A part of me wishes that the weather wasn't so beautiful "outside" .... so I could stay "inside" and bake, bake, and bake some more! lol :)

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! OMGosh, for years I've been looking for a great recipe for yorkshire pudding but I could NEVER get them to rise. Today I found your recipe and following it to a tee and had the best looking puddings ever. Most instuctions tell you to heat the pans for 3-4 minutes on 400 degrees. I left it in the whole 10 minutes. My Yorkshire puddings will never be pancakes again. LOL. Thank you!

mmm - those are lovely looking yorkshires. Think it might be time for a roast beef sunday lunch again soon (always popular in our house - also given I'm not a big fan of turkey the children think roast beef is traditional christmas food :-) )

The advice on this thread is spot I think - hot oil, hot oven is the key, I let the batter stand for a while too (at least an hour often ends up longer)

The only other thing I would add is that if your house is anything like our house - you almost certainly haven't made enough.

Your recipe brought back many wonderful memories of my mother and 2 of her sisters...Yorkies, as we called them, with roast beef and the best gravy I have ever had. I am still trying to perfect both, and your recipe is a must try....One thing I learned the hard way: DO NOT use a pyrex dish. The cool batter shocked the pan, which broke. Quite a mess in the oven, and the smoke alarm battery almost wore out. We had individual ones when we had a big family supper, and my mom made in a TIN cake pan for out family. One of my favourite meals. Thank You!

My one claim to fame while making these was setting the oven on fire - on Boxing Day - with a house full of dinner guests. My strongest memory was that of my Gran with her backside firmly parked in front of the fireplace trying to get warm - while we had all the windows open trying to get the smoke out of the house! This recipe has inspired me to try again! Let's hope I have better results!

Well I am so very happy to report, these were the best 'yorkies' I have ever made, and the best I have ever had!!!!!!! Woohoooooooo :D Thank you so much for this recipe and the wonderful instructions, what I swear made the difference was letting the batter sit out, it was very close to room temperature when I poured it into the hot fat. They rose up big and fluffy! The best I tell you!! Thanks again from the new 'world's best yorkshire pudding maker' ;)

When I make Yorkshire Pudding, I get so much spatter from the grease that it bakes on a horrible mess in my oven, and I have enough smoke coming out that the smoke alarm goes off. The Yorkshire Pudding is really tasty and beautiful though! Does anyone else have this problem? Am I using too much of those tasty drippings?

You only need just a touch of the fat to put in the bottom of the tins. I only use maybe a pea size of cold fat, or if the fat is liquid, like off my roast, I use a half tsp. Where is your oven rack? Maybe move it up to the upper middle? I have a bit of smoking, but that's what you want.. your fat is just right when it starts to smoke. If you're getting spattering, I'd reduce the amount of fat you are putting in.

Ha! I guess I am. I have always used my Joy of Cooking recipe..."Have ready...hot muffin tins containing 1/4 in. beef drippings...". I guess there lies the problem! Thanks--I'll have to try this recipe--so glad that it was posted!

I have been married for 55 years and in all that time I searched for the perfect YP recipe. I found this one a couple of years ago and have been using it ever since. It is absolutely fabulous with roast beef and of course, with the gravy poured into the pudding. Its is even good cold.

love yorkshires they can be tough to nail everytime. Follow this recipe to a T to get the right consistency and taste. A bigger crime tho than tasteless yorks or yorks that haven't risen is an over cooked prime rib roast. Anything over medium rare and you've thrown your well spent money in the garbage. Learn to cook a perfect prime rib medium rare from edge to edge with little to no grey meat around the edges and your guests will be amazed

I have to thank you for sharing this recipe. Whenever it is someone's special day in our house, I (mom) ask what they want for their special dinner. It almost always includes yorkshires :) I came across this recipe after trying a few, and it is the winner for sure! They are always light and fluffy and HUGE!! Love them! Thank you. I'm looking forward to trying the lemon curd recipe I saw in one of the comments above too!!! Yum!

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